The Lover’s Secret (No Exceptions #1)(5)
Author: J.C. Reed

“You apologize to her before I decide to smash in your face,” he growled.

“It’s not necessary,” I whispered, but they both seemed to ignore me.

A moment passed, during which the man’s alcohol-induced haze seemed to lift a little, and his eyes cleared. Finally, he held up his hand. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize,” he said, then apologized some more.

I didn’t hear the rest of what he said, because my date grabbed my hand and forced me down the hall, toward the elevators. I shot a glance over my shoulder at the man as he walked back inside his hotel room and slammed the door shut.

After the elevator carried us one floor up, I followed him down the hall to his room. The silence was unnerving. I looked at the door number and realized my mistake: I had confused the numbers 521 with 512.

Jett pulled out his keycard and swiped it. The door was hardly closed when he turned to me in the narrow hall, his eyes ablaze with fury.

“What the hell were you doing there, Brooke?” he asked. His height was both menacing and arousing, his hard body taking up all available space.

What was that? Did I detect a hint of jealousy?

I regarded his face, the way he was working his jaw, his posture rigid and tense, and then I shrugged. “I just…got lost.”

“You could have called me. The f**ker was about to drag you into his room and do God knows what.”

I knew it was true, and there was no need to comment. Still, we were supposed to play a game, pretend we were two strangers meeting each other, so Jett could later pretend I had my first one-night stand with him, and now the game was ruined.

“Nothing happened.” I shrugged again, signaling that it didn’t matter. “Just let it go.”

He rubbed a hand over his face in frustration, but after a few moments of silence, his shoulders finally relaxed.

I looked at the man I had come to know well over the last few months. Jett had never been one to show much emotion, but now that I was carrying his child, everything had changed. “Will you always react like this?” I asked, frowning, so I wouldn’t laugh out. I had to ask, because Jett had never struck me as someone with anger management issues; then again, I knew firsthand that people seldom wore their psychological problems on their sleeves.

“Only when I spy a damsel in distress, and especially when said damsel is mine.” His lips twitched for a second, and he inched closer, wrapping his arm around my shoulders. “I’m sorry for erupting like that. Are you okay?”

I shrugged again. “Of course I’m okay. I was doing fine. There was no need to threaten and scare the guy over a simple misunderstanding,” I said. “The poor man will probably be scarred for life now, and I’m sure he won’t be booking services on the net anytime soon.”

His features hardened; clearly, he didn’t appreciate my weak attempt to infuse some humor into the tense situation. “Serves him right for believing you’re a stripper.”

“Can you blame him?” I pointed to my dress that was shorter and thinner than anything I had ever worn before. “Look at this getup.”

“Look, baby, even if you tried, you still wouldn’t look like a stripper. You’re sexy as hell, but you don’t look cheap. Any guy who would even suggest otherwise deserves an ass-kicking.” He shrugged out of his jacket.

I said nothing, but couldn’t help but stare at his broad shoulders, admiring the way his muscles seemed to strain his shirt.

“The guy’s an ass**le with no respect for women. Someone should have taught him a lesson a long time ago.”

“Hmm.” I dropped my handbag on the counter, then walked over to him. My hands traced his strong chin and the tiny spot he had missed while shaving.

He smiled, as if the dark fury had simply vanished at my touch.

I loved the way I was able to influence my boyfriend’s mood like that, and my heart skipped a beat at the thought. I still couldn’t believe I could call this sexy man my boyfriend, and I couldn’t believe I had such an effect on him. Pleased, I leaned back against the wall and posed seductively. “But that’s not why we’re here, right?”

He got the hint straight away. “You’re damn right about that.” Ever so slowly, he inched closer, with a devilish glint playing in his eyes and a wicked smile on his lips, intimidating but stirring the deepest pleasure. “You think you have what it takes, Miss Stewart?” he asked, instantly getting back into character. He pinned me against the wall with his arms and moved his mouth dangerously close to mine. With an appreciative growl, he leaned into me and whispered, tracing my ear with his hot breath, “You’ve come to the right place now, and that’s all that matters.”

Absolutely.

I smiled. As always, Jett Mayfield was sexy without even trying.

His mouth descended hungrily upon mine, and I shivered with unbridled pleasure as our tongues merged in a first, heated kiss. I trembled even more when his skillful fingers slowly made their way under my dress, dancing across my flesh, ready to still the aching pain within my core.

Chapter 4

“Wait! Aren’t we going a little too fast?” I asked, prying my lips from Jett’s. My heart slammed hard against my rib cage, and my voice sounded hoarse. We were spread out on the floor in the middle of the hall, with him on top of me, our legs intermingled. His broad chest obscured the view of the remaining room, but I wanted to see it. A one-night stand would be great¸ and I knew I could pull it off, but I needed a little warm-up—maybe some chatting or getting to know each other.

Not too much, just enough to make me feel less…cheap?

I groaned inwardly as soon as the thought wafted into my mind. It was the voice of reason, and of course it was saying exactly what I did not want to hear. Jett was my boyfriend and all, but my first attempt at a one-night stand, even a pretend one, had to be done right.

“I thought you wanted this,” he said matter-of-factly.

I nodded. “Yeah, but…well, I thought you’d give me the tour first.”

“The tour?”

“I’d like to look around the amusement park a little before I hop on the rides,” I said with a wink.

Our eyes connected, and a flicker of playfulness appeared in his gaze. “A tour of this room is the least I’ll give you.” A slow smile spread across his perfect lips.

I raised my brows impatiently.

He sighed, then stood and reached down to help me up. “Fine. Then let me show you around first…and then I’ll take you.”